The top 21 players of the 2020 Miami Dolphins regular season
By Nick Belotto
In 2020, the Miami Dolphins got a lot of production from these 21.
15. DeVante Parker: 63 REC, 793 Yds, 4 TDs
DeVante Parker was a tad bit of a disappointment in the 2020 campaign.
Coming off his best season as a pro, where he put up career numbers and didn’t deal with injuries like he did in the past, Parker underperformed this season, partially due to inconsistent quarterback play coupled with injuries.
Parker hurt himself in week 1 and never seemed to fully recover, hurting his explosiveness. He looked hurt this year and couldn’t get the same separation that he got in last year’s campaign. Despite that, he still put up reasonable numbers
Parker is still a good receiving option on this team and can be a valuable weapon in this offense should he be able to rebound from a lackluster 2020.
14. Ryan Fitzpatrick: 183 for 267, 2091 Yds, 13 TDs, 8 INT, 95.6 Rating
The quarterback discussion is definitely going to be a bit awkward.
Before he was benched, Ryan Fitzpatrick was having a very good season. In fact, he was in line for one of the better statistical seasons of his career. That being said, he can’t be much higher on this list because he didn’t participate in a number of games.
The argument has and will continue to be made that Fitzpatrick should have started over Tua Tagovailoa for the entirety of the season. While I can hear that argument, Tagovailoa undoubtedly had and still has a higher ceiling than Fitzpatrick did and it was the right call to put the rookie in when he was ready. There were definitely times where it felt like the wrong decision, especially after Fitzpatrick’s come from behind victory against the Raiders, but the coaching staff, sans Chan Gailey, felt Tagovailoa could do more for them on the field than Fitzpatrick.
All that being said, Fitz is more than deserving of his spot in our ranking and it will be sad to see him leave if he chooses to do so in this offseason.
13. Tua Tagovailoa: 186 for 290, 1814 Yds, 11 TDs, 5 INT, 87.1 Rating
As I said, this is going to be awkward.
I am sure that many people may be upset with Tagovailoa’s ranking in this. There are a few things that we need to consider when it comes to putting him at 13 on this list.
Outside of a few outings, Tagovailoa did play well for this team. Yes, there were the two awkward benchings and the travesty of the final matchup against Buffalo that tarnished his year. But, overall he played well for a rookie who hadn’t played in almost a year by the time he got his first start. I don’t want to get into the debate about whether or not he is good enough to be the guy for this franchise, because that won’t be helpful for this piece. He did, however, play well, stats aside, and the team won football games when he was at the helm, which is a big deal.
He was nowhere near perfect and he will clearly need to work on a few things over the course of the offseason. I do believe that if he can fix some of his mistakes and if the team can surround him with better talent on offense, he can be successful in Miami, even if his rookie season didn’t end in the most glorious fashion.
12. Christian Wilkins: 47 Tackles. 28 solo, 1.5 sacks, 5 PDs, 1 INT
Wilkins is one of my favorite players. He has a fun attitude and always wears his emotions on his sleeves both on and off the field. He plays with energy and excitement which is even more fun to see coming from a guy who does a lot of the dirty work on the defensive line.
The third-year defensive tackle keeps getting better, especially against the run. He may not be the most dynamic pass rusher, but he puts enough pressure on quarterbacks to be somewhat effective. He can also help out on offense as well, being the poster boy for versatility on this Dolphins team.
11. Bobby McCain: 46 tackles, 39 solo, 5 PDs, 1 INT
Since making the move to safety, Bobby McCain has been solid.
One of the few holdovers from the Adam Gase era, McCain has the versatility that Brian Flores covets in his players across the field. He is decent in coverage and a good, not great, run supporter. His numbers aren’t overwhelmingly impressive, but numbers only tell one half of the story and the other half shows a consistent player who doesn’t make egregious mistakes.
He’s a leader of that defense and has the respect of fellow players, coaches, and the fans.